Sanitary workers of Udhagamandalam Municipality protesting outside the municipal office on Wednesday.
| Photo Credit: M. SATHYAMOORTHY
Sanitation workers employed by the Udhagamandalam Municipality (UMC) struck work on Wednesday (July 1) and staged a sit-in in front of the UMC’s office, condemning the municipality’s “retaliatory action” against protesting workers. They announced that the strike would continue till their demands are met. The protest led to garbage pile up across Udhagamandalam town.
The workers have been protesting against the UMC, alleging that they are not being provided with equipment such as baskets, brooms and cleaning supplies. They also alleged that vacancies were not being filled and that they were being told to work extra hours.
“Workers are also not being allowed to avail of leave; benefits such as pension and gratuity are not being disbursed,” alleged one of the protesting workers, adding that a few of the workers eligible for pension under the Contributory Pension Scheme had not been provided with their benefits. The worker sought anonymity.
They also alleged that damaged municipal vehicles were not being repaired and that contract workers were being compelled to work beyond eight hours a day, in violation of labour laws. The workers alleged that Employees’ State Insurance (ESI) and Provident Fund (PF) contributions for the past year for contract workers had not been deposited and sought immediate payment of the pending amounts. They also demanded that wages be paid in accordance with the rates fixed by the District Collector.
The workers alleged that instead of addressing their demands, the UMC retaliated by terminating the services of several contract sanitation workers. Condemning the alleged retaliatory action, sanitation workers again stopped work from Wednesday morning across Udhagamandalam Municipality and resumed their protest.
During talks with Revenue Department officials, the workers maintained that dismissing contract employees without prior notice for raising legitimate demands was unacceptable and urged the UMC to reinstate the dismissed workers. In response, officials said that the workers had been dismissed by the contractor and that only the company could reinstate them.
The negotiations continued until evening but ended without any agreement. The sanitation workers have announced that they will continue their indefinite strike until all their demands are met and the terminated workers are reinstated.
Published – July 01, 2026 07:23 pm IST